This Sunday marks a week since the Des Moines marathon. My body is still in recovery mode, but my mind is trying to figure out where to go from here. I have had people ask me “Are you done now?” thinking that one stops after running 26.2 miles. But I know that my fitness and lifestyle change is one that is for life, and that means never falling back and returning to old ways. So while the body recovers from one event, the brain starts thinking up all kinds of ways to torture the body some more.

I already had one goal in mind even before the marathon started, and that was to train and run a 50k (31.something) race in 2015. That is still very much part of the plan. My dear friend and training partner Kara came up with the other goal, to train and compete in a olympic triathlon. Kara has never done a triathlon of any distance, and I have done only a few sprint triathlons, but never anything close to the olympic distance (1 mile swim – 25 mile bike – 10k run).

We had done a little pool training earlier in the year, but it tailed off as the marathon distances got longer. We have set a couple of mini goals of competing in sprint triathlons (one in January, and one in spring), and then training with our friends Connie and Eric on open water swimming. So now we work on getting pool time in and increasing distance in preparation for spring.

Kara and I met this morning at the YMCA, and I got 400 yds swimming in to Kara’s 500. We then toweled off and met on the track where we ran 3.1 miles. It’s going to take a little getting used to again, this dual and tri sport training. You can feel the difference in your muscles as you start the next exercise, and trying to get them to switch gears takes some work. But I am confident that we will get it done, just like we handled marathon training, together.

I am also doing a 30 day cardio and ab challenge hosted by my friend Lindsey. We have completed week one, and I never knew how weak my stomach and ab muscles were. I hope that working the core and abs daily helps with my other exercises as well.

Live healthy, be happy!

Travis

Crossing the finish at the IMT Des Moines Marathon … together!